Royal Hill

ROYAL HILL

Anita Strasser

Royal Hill

Engagement

Anita came to SE London 3 years ago and has amassed a large and meaningful body of work.

Attempting to describe Anita’s work is not a question of attaching labels because she is a oneoff …

Not for her the wandering around detached and secretive – the camera with a driver behind it; rather, she is a

person who, initially at least, leaves her camera at home. Anita visits, talks and creates a rapport – and only

then does she reveal the fact that she is a photographer. She creates the moment, gains confidence –

(mutual confidence I suspect) and captures in two or three shots (rarely more) the essence of how she sees

her subject.

This takes a huge amount of commitment and more than a little courage – the decision to embark on a project

is not easily taken, it is researched and evaluated and then the journey begins. Anita’s work is structured and

sculptured; it is not found or discovered by accident; it is the product of engagement.

And you can see it in her photographs – the subjects look confident, relaxed and pleased to be the centre of

Anita’s attention. The engagement is obvious.

Anita’s photography is certainly personal; it is committed, coherent and crafted. Her work says volumes

about her and when she talks about her experiences and the people that she has photographed it is with

respect and engagement

Tony Othen, The Greenwich Gallery

INTRODUCTION

The idea to capture Royal Hill came as a response to the London Villages Project (LVP) organised by London

Independent Photography (LIP), of which I am a member. The project set out “to provide a photographic

record of London now… its multiplicity of communities, its miscellany of histories, its medley of architecture;

its boundaries real and imagined; its current creation, its reference to memory” (Levett, 2011), and was

carried out by about 200 photographers between March 2011 and February 2012. Royal Hill, with its very

strong community and wonderful displays in beautifully decorated independent specialist shops, is a little gem

off the beaten track in Greenwich. Admire different kinds of artwork amidst a wonderful array of flowers and

plants in The Greenhouse; wait in the phenomenal Christmas queue to buy British meat from Drings; say

Hello to Agnes the dog in The Creaky Shed, from where you can buy homemade jams and curds; browse

through the books in Maritime Books, the only specialist naval bookshop in London; have your hair cut in the

'benign and tranquil atmosphere' of Sweeney, and then nip downstairs to admire Yukari’s wallpaper designs

inspired by Greenwich park. These are only some examples of this little secret, which make it a pleasure

every time I walk down Royal Hill. I spent about one year walking up and down this street photographing it,

and speaking to the local people.

Since the completion of the LVP, some of the images from ‘Royal Hill’ have been exhibited in The Greenwich

Gallery, in Goldsmiths College and during Deptford X contemporary art festival. Due to some recent changes

on Royal Hill, I rephotographed some premises in October 2012 to present the street as it was in time of

publication. Issues relating to time, scope and repetition have prevented me from photographing every single

shop and speaking to all shopkeepers.

Anita Strasser

©Anita Strasser 2012

LINEAR HOUSE / THE GREENWICH GALLERY

TONY OTHEN

“I remember the second exhibition: it showed 5 massive photos taken in hospital operating theatres of breast

enlargements and breast reduction. It had a huge effect on people… That’s when I was reminded of the effect that

photography could have on our lives.”

‘Othen’s on line in Greenwich’ was set up 40 years ago in Neptune House, where the Health Centre is now just off Royal Hill. The name of the

company was a comment to the meridian but also to E6 processing where on line means accurate. There were studios and darkrooms, but

soon we got bigger and were bursting at the seams, and when Linear House came up and the landlord bought it, we moved down here. The

building was neglected but I refurbished it and reequipped it. Gradually we realised that the enormous diversity of activities for one company

wasn’t wise so the various services got split up. The DPC (Digital Presentation Centre) was founded 25 years ago, and the processing lab for

E6 was expanded to include C41, there were colour and Black and White darkrooms and the current gallery space was the reception for the

lab. As digital photography made its presence felt the processing laboratory closed and we started renting space to outside companies that

wanted to join a creative hub.

There were photographers, designers, artists, and the intertrading was useful, and it was nice to contribute to Greenwich in this creative way.

The DPC are the vanguard of it – we have distinguished artists coming in regularly. We house the whole photo archive of Cartier jewels and

BodyShop. We’ve also now got The Wedding Music Company and an architectural photographer in the house.

When business for processing and the darkrooms stopped, we had to do something with the space so we turned the reception area into a

photography gallery. I persuaded my daughter who’d studied History of Art to run the gallery. This was the birth of the Viewfinder Gallery and it

was really exciting. She had a great talent for putting on shows. They were usually one man shows displaying a coherent body of work which

was cutting edge and thoughtprovoking. I remember the second exhibition: it showed 5 massive photos taken in hospital operating theatres of

breast enlargements and breast reduction. It had a huge effect on people – some were persuaded to go ahead with having the operation and

some not. That’s when I was reminded of the effect that photography could have on our lives. Nina (my daughter) had some incredibly

powerful exhibitions and one spectator once remarked “Thank you for making me think”.

Now that the processing function has gone, we are left with just two companies that my wife and I run – Tony Othen and Associates and

Presentation Matters Ltd which is a communications company that communicates particular ideas to an audience via exhibitions, conferences,

videos, photography, etc.

I started as a photographer and got a Diploma in Photography (no degrees at the time) from the London College of Printing. I was offered a job

in the darkroom of the Natural History Museum, but I didn’t want to spend my life in the darkroom and became freelance. In 1976 I was part of

the ‘British Association of Settlements’ Adult Literacy Project’ which was something unheard of at the time. The ‘Adult Literacy Campaign’ was

born and we, Helen was the first employee, worked for 1520 years making videos, adverts, offering training, and organising 1215

conferences a year. It wasn’t just for adults, it was from birth to grave. The various government agencies received millions of pounds and

made a huge difference in the lives of many people whose basic skills needed developing.

What helped my early career was the publication of my photos on social issues in a magazine. I had worked for Penguin and MIND and

somebody I knew published something similar in feel to the Observer magazine in 1969 but it was about social issues that I had

photographed. The guy was kind enough to put my name next to each of my images and then people started phoning me up asking me to do

some work.

For 40 years I took photos for a reason – I got paid. I produced what others wanted to communicate – I always had a brief. Now, there is no

brief, it’s just for me and I’m enjoying myself and the absence of the ‘project’. My life in photography is starting afresh and is becoming very

exciting.

Tony Othen

THE DPC

RICHARD RIDDICK

I have run the photo studio on Royal Hill for 10 years. Our clients range from local businesses to internationally famed artists. I studied

photography at Falmouth College of Arts and then worked as a photoassistant before going travelling for 2 years in Asia and Australia. I’d

worked at the studio before college as the hand colour printer in the darkroom. On my return I transferred my darkroom skills to the computer

and within two years I was the Company Director!

DAVID CUTTS

I achieved a BA (Hons) degree in Graphic Design in 1983 and then moved to London looking for work. I started making a living as a freelance

photographer for Spotlight magazine and various independent theatre companies before I got a fulltime post at the National Maritime Museum

in Greenwich. After a few years there I got bored and moved into the more commercial side of things working for a small local

studio/laboratory. I set up my company with a fellow work colleague about 9 years ago. Our client base is as large as it is varied and we have

dealings with local businesses all the way to large national and international companies and agencies. We photograph, film, print and design

and work for three of the biggest names in the conceptual and fine art world.

Richard

David

THE GREENHOUSE

JANIS TILLING and JERRY BUTTON

“Did you know that there used to be a railway line

under Royal Hill? The wall in our backyard is a

remaining section of the train bridge wall.”

We started here in 1986. It was an empty, quite derelict building

when we bought it. Previously, Lisa Hammond, who is renowned

for her pottery, made and sold her work here for quite a while.

She is now at her Maze Hill studio and other places. Prior to that

there used to be a haberdashery here. We changed it to a plant

and flower shop and were here from 1986 to 1998 before moving

to the south coast and leasing it to two different sets of people.

Monique from La Fleur (the previous shop) has now retired and

the building is due to have some repairs take place. In the

meantime we have 'reopened' The Greenhouse and are enjoying

seeing old and new customers. When the work is finished we

would like the shop to continue as a flower shop with a new

tenant.

Did you know that there used to be a railway line under Royal Hill? The train used to go on a loop from Nunhead up to Blackheath Hill, and

where the cinema is now there used to be Greenwich Park Station. It was built to get people to go to Greenwich Park. It closed in 1917 and

some of the houses here are built on the cuts. The wall in our backyard is a remaining section of the train bridge wall.

I (Janis) started working parttime in the garden centre that used to be behind Royal Hill (Down To Earth, run by Martin Rogers) where I

discovered my love of plants and flowers, and so left teaching to start the shop. It became busy and so Jerry came to work there too.

We'd been here for 12 years before we left, and when we came back 14+ years later (in September 2012) we were amazed and pleased that

everyone is still here, and it’s great to see all the familiar faces.

THE CREAKY SHED

JASON HUNTER

“I make jams, marmalade, chutneys and curds myself. I also make the Christmas mincemeat, cranberry sauce and

jellies. I started making this stuff as a hobby but it’s selling really well so I keep doing it.”

I’ve always been in retail; I used to work uptown in department stores and the like, and

then my mum got terminally ill. After that I wanted something different. I’d always had

to be all suited and booted uptown, but I wanted more freedom and to have my own

business. When I say freedom it sounds great, and it is, but one thing people forget is

that you don’t have sick pay, holiday pay and no time for yourself. I can’t remember

the last time I was down the pub on a Friday night with mates. After a 17hour day you

want to go home. You have no social life, but it’s all swings and roundabouts; there are

lots of good things about running your own business.

The shop hours are from 85 Mon – Sat and 104 Sun, but on market days, which are

three times a week, we start at 2am and finish at 5pm. We go to New Spitalfields in

Leytonstone, come back, unload, do the orders, and then I drive to Kent to the

farmers. I get most of the produce from Kent, and people want to know where you

source your produce from. The pumpkins are handpicked, for example, and I make

the jams, marmalade, chutneys and curds myself. I also make the Christmas

mincemeat, cranberry sauce and jellies. I started making this stuff as a hobby but it’s

selling really well so I keep doing it.

I was born in Kent, then moved to Blackheath, but I only had a flat there and I wanted

something bigger to have space for cats and a dog, so I moved back to Kent. It’s

cheaper there and now I have a big garden, and the commute is not so bad. It’s really

nice because the farmers I buy from are now more like my friends and family. I don’t

know them from my childhood, but it’s all very friendly. My egg supplier is also my

pumpkin and squash grower, and the last time I went there I had a cup of tea and a

sandwich. One place recommends another place and this is how I found my suppliers.

I opened The Creaky Shed in 2003. The place used to be a fishmonger called The Dab Hand. It’d been empty for a couple of years before I

signed the lease. I’d like to sign a longer lease, like 10 years, to have more security but I don’t know if that’s possible. It’s a really special

community here, but I might want a bigger challenge some time. I’ve been here 10 years, and I really liked the process of setting up a new

business, taking photos of different places to help me with ideas for decorating the shop. I used to work in management uptown with 200 staff

to work with at Christmas time, with a turnover of £10,000,000. I’d like to work in a bigger business again but my own.

Agnes, Jason's dog

Jason (right) and staff

DRINGS

THE CHEESE BOARD

MICHAEL JONES

“I developed a love of food from my mother and then

ended up in a business involved with food and have

never looked back.”

The cheeseboard opened in 1985 and I worked with the original

owner who I bought out a year or so later. It was my second

business venture at the tender age of 21. It was not a family

business but I did run a small catering business with my mother

for twenty years from 1990ish. Her previous work was in

hospitals, as was my father’s career in the Army medical Corp.

The building at 26 Royal Hill has been a grocer since the turn of

the century. Just before we opened the cheese shop it had gone

through a few years as a kitchen showroom and antique shop,

but we got it back to its roots as a food shop.

Michael

Drings was opened by Bob and Dave Drings’ father in about

1963. However, he fell ill quite soon after and the brothers took over running the shop. Both had been working elsewhere at the time. They ran

the shop until 2005. I had got to know the brothers very well during the twenty years; we were business neighbours and played golf with each

other on a weekly basis. When they eventually talked about retiring I expressed an interest in taking over the shop. At first I think they didn’t

take me seriously but eventually they sold me the business.

Food is certainly a passion and it has been fantastic to own businesses that are selling a product that continues to excite me after nearly 30

years. I must add that running a business is also very enjoyable and being selfemployed for all but one year of my career is also a huge

bonus. I developed a love of food from my mother and then ended up in a business involved with food and have never looked back.

We source our products from many places, some local (bread from Rhodes in Greenwich) and also far away, cheeses from across Europe. My

main criteria when choosing suppliers is firstly the quality of the produce and also the attitude of the farmer or wholesaler. If we have a good

relationship it means my customers will get better service and quality produce.

The advantages are many: great food at great prices, meeting a lot of likeminded people on both the supplier side and also our customers,

many of whom have become close friends over the years. It has been a successful business so far and I have been able to invest money

wisely and hopefully be comfortable for the rest of my life which is satisfying when it has been all your own work. The disadvantages are

probably the long working hours and with retail you have to be open set hours, so you are tied a little to the shops. I can’t think of any other

negative aspects.

Our customers are varied and come from all social groups, however the majority live locally and therefore you could call a lot of them wealthy

Greenwich residents. However, our best and longeststanding customers are probably the working class ones who have grown up shopping at

Drings and would never buy meat anywhere else. We know a lot of our customers by first names and feel we can have a laugh and a joke with

most of them. We definitely feel part of a community on Royal Hill; as shopkeepers we all tend to pull together and certainly the residents

make us feel a hub of the local area.

Part of me wants to retire young and enjoy some peace and quiet, but I would miss the shops terribly and all the customer contact. I think I can

see myself taking a more relaxed role in the business at some point, and letting somebody else make me some money whilst I relax a bit with

my young family. In reality I am sure I will be there for a long time yet but not as long as Bob and Dave who only retired in their early seventies.

THE FISHMONGER LTD

JULIAN PRYKE

“It’s not easy I’m on my feet all day long and in

the winter I freeze, but every penny I earn is

appreciated and I sell something I know is good

for people. Fish is much more a labour of love.”

Originally, I opened the shop in East Greenwich, opposite

Arches, but it didn’t work out so I moved here. Michael from the

Cheese shop approached me and asked me if I wanted to open

up here, so 6 years ago I sublet the space and opened the fish

shop. Before that, the space was used by the cheese shop as a

storage room and before that by the milkman.

I’m doing okay, but of course I’d like to earn more. If you want to

make money, open a butcher’s! Fish is much more a labour of

love.

I used to work in a big publishing company and was responsible

for ‘Commercial Fishing’ and publish in shipping magazines, which turned my head towards Fishmongery. I’d done lots of cooking and I love

eating fish. After a while I wanted to get out of a big company and be part of a local community. I chose Greenwich because I love it. I moved

here 12 years ago and I simply love Greenwich. I love its feel, its history (it has a massive history within the fishing industry), it’s by the

Thames (I love the Thames) and across the river from where I live in East Greenwich I can see the biggest music venue in the world. In half an

hour you’re in the deep countryside of Kent. There is no other place like Greenwich. My kids go to school here which is nicely hidden away,

and living here is like living in a village. Greenwich is like a little secret.

90% of my customers live within a stone’s throw and we are a good community. I see women get pregnant, get bigger, then I see them with

the baby and then I feed the kid the first bit of fish. It was part of my mission statement – ‘to be part of a community’, and now I know everyone

here.

I regretted it at first – it was the hardest thing I ever did. I worked 15 hours a day. I got up at 4am, worked all day, came home, went to sleep

and the same the next day. I did this for 6 months, then it got easier. Now, I pick up my kids every other day.

It’s not easy – I’m on my feet all day long and in the winter I freeze, but every penny I earn is appreciated and I sell something I know is good

for people.

Julian and Lindsey

SWEENEY / YUKARI SWEENEY DESIGN

Kevin

Yukari

KEVIN SWEENEY

“I was on a bumpy bus ride and there was a girl with short hair in front of me, and every time the bus went over a bump

her hair went up and always fell back into place. I found that intriguing”.

I’ve been here for almost 12 years now. I worked in the West End for many years and I’d had enough. I’ve always loved this street and I waited

for one year for premises to become available. I moved to the area in 1982 and used to go to Greenwich market regularly – it was cool then.

Greenwich has changed a lot since then, but this street has always been special. Immediately before me the shop was a greengrocer, and at

some point it was a corn merchant’s. I think the building was built in around the 1750s. We have timber frame beams and the floors aren’t

straight.

I don’t know why I chose hairdressing. I remember when it was and that all my friends thought I was having a laugh – until they realised I was

serious about it. I never wanted to work in an office and I didn’t want to go to university, but why I chose hairdressing I can’t answer. One thing

happened though: I was on a bumpy bus ride and there was a girl with short hair in front of me, and every time the bus went over a bump her

hair went up and always fell back into place. I found that intriguing. I don’t know if that was the reason.

I used to teach in the Academy of Vidal Sassoon and I thought maybe I should go to uni, and then I tried it and realised why I hadn’t wanted to

go in the first place. I can’t think of anything I’d rather do. I like cutting men’s hair. It’s easy and we talk about football, but I wouldn’t want to do

it all the time. With men you can only talk about two things whereas with women you can talk about everything. They listen to you and you

listen to them, it’s a proper conversation. But I don’t indulge in or tolerate gossip. My clients are educated and motivated people; there is no

time for gossip.

I used to do hair for many shows, some in New York, I have also lived in Japan, and I spent all that time in the West End. After all that, I

wanted something nice and simple, no nonsense that goes with shows. Just nice, quality work.

I don’t follow a particular philosophy but I think that in most places it’s just about the hair and to get the job done. Also, in most hairdressers it’s

mayhem. In my shop, the hairdressing can be taken for granted but there should be other things that bring people to my place. I treat my

customers with respect and I want to provide a relaxing environment. The nicest thing a customer said to me was that my place has a benign

and tranquil atmosphere.

YUKARI SWEENEY

“I went back to Japan last year and I realised that I am 100% Japanese, and I’m happy with that. Greenwich is my second

home; I am a very happy Japanese in Greenwich.”

I am a surface designer. I produce wallpapers, fabrics and home accessories. Many people ask me what my inspiration is, and I always find it

difficult to answer. I get inspired by so many things. I think I get a great deal of inspiration from nature; I love horses, trees, and I particularly

love walking with my little dog Teddy in Greenwich park. I was born in a small town in Japan. I spent a lot of time in the field, on the river bank,

and in our little backyard when I was a child.

I used to work in fashion in Japan, and at that time you had to be someone to work in that field; you had to look a certain way. But when I

came home, I just wanted to be myself. I realised how important it was to be happy on both sides – it's not just the external world that you

need to feel satisfied in, the internal world is important too, so I changed to interior design. Since I had worked in the city, coming to a busy

place like London wasn't too much of a shock, but it was still very different. When I moved to Greenwich 20 years ago I started noticing things

for the first time. I felt as though I had to change a lot. When I lived in Japan, I could do and express everything I wanted. I could express my

feelings in words, but when I came to England there was this language barrier, and I couldn’t express myself and my feelings. In Japan I had

been running around, doing so many things. I was working all the time and didn’t live in the present. So when I came here, there was nothing

else I could do but quietly observe things, and take time to think about them.

When I first came here, I just wanted to get away from fashion but I think it is in my blood. Here in England you can be whoever you want to

be; you don’t have such strict rules and borders like we have in Japan, so I’m slowly enjoying getting back into fashion too. Also, I used to

have problems with coming to terms with my Japanese identity; I didn’t know who I was. It took some time to find who I really am. I went back

to Japan last year and I realised that I am 100% Japanese, and I’m happy with that. Greenwich is my second home; I am a very happy

Japanese in Greenwich.

RICHARD THE FIRST

MARK GOURDIE

“‘This pub is full of friends that haven’t met yet’ – I saw

this hanging above a bar in New York.”

I’ve been running pubs for about 20 years, and have been a

manager for 12. Before this I was managing independent pubs in

Fulham and Hammersmith, and then I applied with Young’s and

got the job here in this pub. I’ve only been here for 5 days so I

can’t tell you much about this pub, but there’s a plaque with

information written on it right by the saloon door.

This area is very different from West London, and both

Greenwich and Blackheath are lovely areas. I also enjoy the

southeast street markets like in Lewisham, Brockley and

Catford. I first came to Greenwich last summer with some

friends, and now I’m discovering the SouthEast for the first time.

I live upstairs and got a lovely view of Canary Wharf and the

Shard. Royal Hill is lovely: the independent shops, the beautiful houses and architecture, it’s close to London but you don’t feel that you are in

London, and within 20 minutes you are in the countryside.

I started working parttime in a pub when I was in college. Then I decided to not go to university and started working fulltime and things went

from there. I love the industry. I ran bars in the U.S. (New York and San Francisco) for 8 years, came back in 2003 and worked in two pubs in

Fulham and Hammersmith.

A pub should be the centre of the community where people forget their worries. It’s where you meet your friends. ‘This pub is full of friends that

haven’t met yet’ – I saw this hanging above a bar in New York. Pubs should be communitybased. The pubs here on Royal Hill are quite

special and different from the tourist traps of Greenwich centre.

People have been drinking in this pub for 30 years and I want to keep it this way.

Mark

THE GREENWICH UNION

DANIEL PERSSON

“My favourite is the Union. It’s a Viennese style amber lager which is a bit darker. It’s malty, nutty, caramel – beautiful.”

Basically, the Union is a very good pub – it’s true.

Alistair Hook is the founding father of Meantime. He’d spent some time in Germany where they have nice lagers. In the UK it’s mainly just

handpumped beer, but in Europe they have this excellent tradition to brew lagers. Alistair thought that nobody in the UK made nice beer so in

1990 he set up the Meantime brewery in Charlton. It was literally 4 guys in a shed, and the first two years were hard but it has grown simply

through word of mouth. And as he needed somewhere nice to drink the beer, he opened the Greenwich Union in the same year.

Immediately before this, it was The Observatory for 23 years and before that The Horse and Hound for a very long time. Neither were going

very well. When we took over the premises, they were in a really bad condition. The previous owners had even taken the floorboards up.

For the food, we use highquality produce, and everything is made fresh on the premises – nothing is frozen. It’s simple but good, and it’s

supposed to mirror the beer. We don’t offer fancy beers we have a couple but there’s something for everyone.

I joined Meantime in 2009. I came to the UK for fun and worked in a few other pubs first. I think there is a unique pub culture in the UK. Most

traditional pubs have the big front room – a sort of communal area, and drinking wasn’t the main thing, it was more about the social part. Now

pubs have become a bit more barlike and the social part is becoming less important. We try to continue the tradition of having the social

aspect as an important part, and focus on the community aspect. We make an effort to know our customers’ names and what they drink it’s

hugely important and it keeps regulars. People only used to go to their local pub, now people travel to go to other pubs – it’s a shame in a way.

But sometimes when you go into proper local pubs it seems exclusive to regulars and the atmosphere seems hostile to outsiders at times. We

don’t want to create that here.

I’m thinking of moving on though. Meantime is trying to spread into north London as we are only known in the south. As I live north, I’ll

probably move once we find a location. I will miss the people (but not the bar, it’s too small), the staff and the customers, but everything else

goes with me to the next place – the beers, the food. Meantime is a great company to work for. It’s like a family business and it’s still small

enough to have this family feeling. Friday night at the Union, for example, is brewery night, where all the brewers meet. It is getting bigger

though and last year, they opened a new and larger brewery in Greenwich.

I have a passion for beer. We have a continuously evolving range of beers, but my favourite is the Union. It’s a Viennese style amber lager

which is a bit darker. It’s malty, nutty, caramel – beautiful. At Meantime we believe in quality, craftsmanship and value for money.

Daniel

MARITIME BOOKS

ANTHONY AND SETITIA SIMMONDS

“The book trade has changed enormously in the last five years with the web coming to dominate the business; indeed

many bookshops have closed their doors with their owners dealing from home or through book fairs.”

We have both been in the book trade all our working lives. I started originally in publishing but established my own business specialising in

books on naval and maritime history in 1974, in North London, dealing from a book room and through mail order. Setitia began her career

working at Constables, the publishers, and then with a long established firm in central London, G. Heywood Hill Ltd, in Curzon Street, where

she managed the children’s book department.

In 1984 we decided to combine our efforts and moved to Greenwich opening our first shop in Greenwich Market. We had one of only two

shops, our neighbour sold exotic underwear, whilst the market still operated as a fruit and vegetable wholesale centre. The market opened at

5am and closed at 11am, after which many of the porters recovered from their exertions in the Coach and Horses pub. Greenwich was a very

unusual place in the 1970s as it had six secondhand bookshops and four antique shops, along with a real hardware store. There was also

one of the best model shops in South East London, and a few doors away a toyshop. I also recall that there were few restaurants, indeed if

you wanted to eat then your best bet was one of the pubs.

We moved our business onto Nelson Road in 1987 when we acquired the head lease of No 23 from Dick Moy who owned a number of

properties in the town, including the Spread Eagle in Stockwell Street.

We certainly had our best trading years in the 1980s1990s in Greenwich before the arrival of the endless clothing shops and restaurants

changed the character of the area.

By 2000, it was obvious that rents were going to increase to such a point that small family businesses could no longer make a living in the

town. We were fortunate in being able to buy the freehold of our building in Royal Hill, and this is where we will stay. The area has the feel of a

village and local people have invariably been friendly and helpful.

The book trade has changed enormously in the last five years with the web coming to dominate the business; indeed many bookshops have

closed their doors with their owners dealing from home or through book fairs.

We hope to continue our business in Greenwich through the shop, catalogues and of course the web.

MALCOM has been cleaning windows around here since 1987

and I was introduced to him outside Maritime Books

ROYAL TEAS

RAYMOND VOCE

“We also used to have a blackboard outside, and people used to write funny things like ‘lintel soup’ instead of lentil

soup, or ‘rubble and squeak’ and ‘cheesy beams’. I don’t know what happened to that.”

Royal Teas has had the same owner since 1989, but she lives in France. Previously, the place also did food but exact details aren’t known

except that not all that happened here was legitimate (council documents).

I used to be a teacher of maths but got disillusioned so I quit. I then worked in a restaurant in Blackheath where I met the owner of Royal Teas.

Not long after she gave me this place to run, and I’ve now been here for 12 years. At first I felt embarrassed to say "I run a café", especially

among solicitors and other highranking professionals, but now it’s ok.

When I took over, the bar was at the front and the people were sitting at the back by the chimney brass, smoking and talking. It was very

cliquey and when you came in, you couldn’t see anything because of the smoke. So, I decided to change things and put the seating at the

front and the bar at the back. The building nearly collapsed when we knocked down a wall, so it was closed for ages and I thought: “What am I

doing?” We also used to have a blackboard outside, and people used to write funny things like ‘lintel soup’ instead of lentil soup, or ‘rubble and

squeak’ and ‘cheesy beams’. I don’t know what happened to that.

I enjoy the people side of it. People come here because they want downtime, and different people chat to each other. There are really

interesting people that come here – photographers, journalists, etc. – and I’ve had an interesting situation where someone found a good job

through café contacts. I love the people aspect of this place.

We get the coffee from Herbert & Ward. They used to own The Tea Building in Brockley, then they moved to Lewisham, but now they’ve

moved somewhere outside of London. They were so local and used to pop in every now and then. The tea is from Woodhams, who’ve been

dealing tea forever. We’ve had the same suppliers all those years.

I don’t really like cooking. I can’t cook for two but cooking for more people is okay. I decide on the menu which is mostly vegetarian (except

salmon), and I once got asked by someone who was making a nice book about cafés why it’s mostly vegetarian and I said: "Because with no

cooking experience I felt it was less likely I would poison anyone if the cafe was vegetarian". It was such a learning curve at the beginning, and

I just wanted to avoid trouble. Some people kick up a fuss about the salmon as it’s not vegetarian, but I never said it’s fully vegetarian.

Unfortunately, we can’t cook here the kitchen isn’t suitable for cooking (so the regulations say). So, I have to cook it at my other place, The

Brockley Mess, and bring it here. I constantly go back and forth, it’s not ideal.

I feel that there is a strong community here on Royal Hill. We use Drings for the new place in Brockley, we get the newspapers from the

newsagent, and also other things when we run out. Our storage space is really small and it’s hard to predict what you need, so sometimes we

pop out and get stuff from the street. Then I also chat to other shopkeepers.

I know most of our customers. We’re very known – we’re in many guide books, also in Lonely Planet, and the Japanese like us, they make an

effort to come here. The Times once published a series of places for the best afternoon teas and we were in the top 5. All the others cost like

£40 and ours is £7.25. After that, we got phone calls for reservations and I just said to them “You have never been here before, have you?”

We are very friendly and strive to create a community feel within the cafe. We use good quality ingredients and are affordable. It is nice to be

included in many articles on the best cafes in London but I don't take these too seriously; I just do what I think is right. I like it when people

come here and give us suggestions. I go around all the time to see what other people do and that gives me ideas for the place. I like the

community thing here, people chat to each other, but personally, I like being anonymous when I go to cafes, and I like trying different places.

I’ve got two cafes now but my heart is in Royal Teas (although I would have given it a different name) – it’s my baby. At the beginning, I was

totally alone, then I got helpers for the weekend and now I’ve got fulltime staff. They seem to like it here and they stay here for a long time.

Ray

BUENOS AIRES

KATE VARGAS

“Argentinians are Italians who speak Spanish, live in

French houses, and believe they are British”.

Ernesto Sabato

We opened the café in 2005. It used to be an organic food shop,

and it looked very different. We changed a lot – knocked down a

wall and I painted the ceiling, for example. We had originally

wanted to open a restaurant but couldn’t because this building is

owned by Greenwich council and it only has A1 use, which

means no openhob cooking. So, we opened this café. My

husband is from Argentina so we named the café Buenos Aires.

Argentina is a relatively new country with a lot of French, Italian,

Spanish and British influence, and we wanted to encapsulate this

mix in this café and we hope this is brought across. As the

journalist Ernesto Sabato said: “Argentinians are Italians who

speak Spanish, live in French houses, and believe they are

British”.

If you think about French food you think of pate. If you think of Italian food you think pasta, salami, olive oil, etc. Our food has a very strong

Italian influence, we get daily fresh bread from a French baker, and we sell Argentinian snacks and some British food. We believe that simple

food is the best, but we also believe in authentic food. Many places call themselves Italian restaurants, but how many authentic Italian

restaurants are there? I think my passion for food comes from travelling. When you travel you try different things and get a taste for different

food.

We’ve constantly got to look at the stock and source new products to compete. One bug bear I’ve got is that the council doesn’t do enough to

support their local businesses. It’s a tough competition and we can really feel it now that all supermarkets have started to sell Deli food. The

government should put more restrictions on opening times and what chain stores can sell. With the development in Greenwich especially,

prices are going up and soon only chain stores can afford the high rent prices. I could take you on a walk tomorrow, showing you all the empty

shops around Greenwich – it’s extremely difficult to set up business these days. People compare our prices with prices in Costa, for example,

and that is not a fair equation. Of course we could offer an eggmayonnaise sandwich and become an ordinary sandwich bar, but we want to

keep our identity and maintain our integrity and place in the market. That’s what we’re about! We care about the food and we believe in high

quality food. If you do something, do it right.

During weekdays we have mainly regulars – some regulars have come every day since the day we opened. At weekends we get visitors,

visitors who come to Greenwich for the day. Yes, there is a very strong community on Royal Hill. When we first started we were here every day

and got to know people very well. We’ve been invited to Christenings and have been out for dinner together, but now I see them less because

I’m not here as often. We have a restaurant in Blackheath and we have two children.

Kate with husband

MINERVA ANTIQUES

JONATHAN ATKINS

“The fun isn’t in selling though – that’s just a necessity – the fun is in finding and buying a piece.”

I set up the Greenwich shop 12 years ago. It was an empty shop and I’d just moved around the corner, so it was a perfect opportunity. I’d

always wanted to have my own base locally. I’ve always loved antique fairs and buying antiquities and I had already worked in Bermondsey

and Chiswick for years.

I grew up just outside Blackheath and always wanted to live in Greenwich. Greenwich has this village feeling and all things in Greenwich seem

good. There used to be a pet shop here and then it was empty for 18 months to 2 years. The council wanted a business that was not

competing with other businesses around here and which offered a service to the community. We have the green credentials: we don’t throw

anything away, instead we recycle, restore and upholster; this is our service to the community.

The business is going well. There used to be five antiques shops in the area; we’re the only one left. It’s great to be able to do what I love and

still manage to pay the bills. At the end of each year I think “I’ve done it again”. I don’t need to build an empire.

I’ve spent years with restorers and I know how to do it. I’m now more involved in buying and sourcing wonderful pieces for the shop. The fun

isn’t in selling though – that’s just a necessity – the fun is in finding and buying a piece. Sometimes I find something that fits perfectly into a

little space at home, and then I keep it. My house isn’t full of antique furniture though, I only have a few fine pieces. People are often surprised

when they come to my house and see that it’s not full of antiques. I would love to have more antiques at home, but with four children and a

hefty mortgage I always end up having to sell off the best pieces. We are after all only the temporary custodians of these fine pieces.

Most of the business is done via the website. Many people check for things online and then call to ask to have a look at it. There is no point in

me sitting in the shop all day; it’s often better to be out and about buying. Many people don’t understand our prices and the value of antiques;

they buy a new sofa and throw it away within 3 years. But antiques are a niche market for people who feel the attraction and understand the

form of a piece of furniture.

There is a strong community feeling on Royal Hill. I know everyone; we discuss things, have fun. I get all my fish from the Fishmonger, the

meat from the butcher’s, the bagels from the cheese shop on a Saturday, I use the laundrette, buy my newspaper from the sweetshop, get my

coffee next door and have lunch at Royal Teas.

Jonathan

VINA LAUNDERETTE & DRY CLEANERS

ABDULLAH

“I have been here for six years and I’m so happy here. Royal Hill and all of Greenwich is such a nice place. The

Clocktower Market is really nice. It’s the best area; nice area, nice people. The customers are from this area, but also

tourists come here. The launderette is owned by my cousin. This has been a launderette for more than 50 years”.

Abdullah

SWEET STOP

RAJ V PATEL

“The people of Greenwich are very nice, especially on

Royal Hill, and all my customers are very friendly.”

I've been here for 20 years. I used to have a shop in East

Greenwich by Greenwich hospital, and then George, who used

to have the shop here and wanted to retire, was looking for a

new owner, and so I bought the shop off him. The building

belongs to Greenwich council as it is part of the conservation

area, but I'm the lease holder. The shop is pretty much the same

as what it used to be, just the layout is a bit different.

I don't live here, but I love everything about the area. The people

of Greenwich are very nice, especially on Royal Hill, and all my

customers are very friendly. I know them very well and they

know me. Things have changed a bit though as many people

move out of the area and buy property somewhere else. We

also feel the recession, like everyone else, but we have been

happy here until now. I'm here most mornings and go home to

relax a bit when my wife takes over. I've got a few more years to

go, and I don't think I'm going to open up shop anywhere else.

There is a great sense of community here on Royal Hill. When

someone has a problem we help each other out, and we go to

each other's shops to have a chat. I don't do much shopping

here because my wife's in charge of the shopping, but we use

the shops on this street.

SHOP INDEX

THE GREENWICH GALLERY

Linear House, Peyton Place, Greenwich SE10 8RS. Tel: 020 8465 5968

www.thegreenwichgallery.com

THE DPC

Linear House, Peyton Place, Greenwich SE10 8RS. Tel: 020 8858 8351

www.thedpc.com

THE GREENHOUSE

18 Royal Hill, Greenwich SE10 8RT. Tel: 020 83051772

THE CREAKY SHED

20 Royal Hill, Greenwich SE10 8RT. Tel: 0208 269 0333

www.thecreakyshed.co.uk

DRINGS


www.drings.co.uk

THE CHEESE BOARD


www.cheeseboard.co.uk

THE FISHMONGER LTD

The Rear of 26 Royal Hill, Greenwich, SE10 8RT. Tel: 07880 541 485

www.thefishmongerltd.com

SWEENEY


YUKARI SWEENEY DESIGN


www.yukarisweeneydesign.com

RICHARD THE FIRST


www.richardthefirst.co.uk

THE GREENWICH UNION


www.greenwichunion.com

MARITIME BOOKS


www.navalandmaritimebooks.com

ROYAL TEAS


www.royalteascafe.co.uk

BUENOS AIRES


www.buenosairesltd.com

MINERVA ANTIQUES


www.minervaantiques.co.uk

VINA LAUNDERETTE & DRY CLEANERS


SWEET STOP

94 Royal Hill, Greenwich SE10 8RT. Tel: 020 020 8692 5360

www.anitastrasser.com

Royal Hill

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